"Dealing with the press is something that you've gotta start getting used to," Gomez told MTV News, "and you know people want something to talk about, so they're going to have the two Disney girls — or three Disney girls — kind of feuding.

"There's no feud — there's nothing to feud about, so why start a fight?" she continued. "It's something that we all have to live with, and unfortunately it involves friends."

"I'm not interested in being anybody but myself, and I'm not here to replace anyone," Gomez said. "I think that she's a wonderful performer, and of course it's a compliment. But I would like to take a different route."

Gomez said she already has a plan, and it may not include the Disney family. "Acting is definitely my passion all the way," she said. "I would love to step out of Disney and maybe do a couple of roles — maybe challenging roles and fun roles, new things like that," but she quickly clarified that she'll "always be with my Disney Channel family." (Not least because she's got a record deal with Hollywood Records.)

One thing that Selena is really looking forward to is the opportunity to vote in 2012. Until then, she's out there spreading the word and working with the campaign UR Votes Count and letting young people know it's cool to vote.

"I'm very excited to be supporting it. It's basically educating teens on why it's important to vote and what's going on in the nation and what's going on the world," she said. "So as a teen it's a huge responsibility to think about who I want to run our country. So I think kids don't really get that, so I would love to educate them more on that."